By Our Staff Reporter
NAINITAL, 7 Dec: Away from the maddening hustle bustle of the city, Kautik International Film Festival is set in the backdrop of the tranquil mountains of Uttarakhand to not only promote independent cinema in the hills but to also provide an engrossing environment for filmmakers and film enthusiasts to gather and focus on cinema in the absence of mobile network and other urban distractions.
The Kautik International Film Festival is a reposeful, exclusive and diverse film festival held annually in the hills of Uttarakhand over the past six years. Over the years, the Kautik International Film Festival has attracted filmmakers from all around the globe to the remote vicinity of the Mahaseer Fishing Camps, Marchula, in the outer zone of the Jim Corbett National Park. In the thick of the tiger reserve filmmakers and film lovers connect over stimulating cinema in a very cosy gathering.
A selection of eight to ten features, documentaries, animation and around twenty shorts picked out by the esteemed panelists are screened over the course of the three days.
The 6th Edition of Kautik International Film
Festival was held during 2 to 4 December. Films from Iran and Nepal were the highlight of the show along with India as well as UK and USA. Delegates from these countries visited the festival and held panel discussions during the course of their stay.
Minister Satpal Maharaj was the Chief Guest at the closing ceremony. This year’s festival did not only educate the people on cinema but also shed light on the serenity and solace that the isolated venue had to offer.
Kautik international Film Festival is an accommodating and welcoming place for upcoming as well as established filmmakers. It’s a place where curiosity meets wisdom.
As many as 44 countries participated in the festival and 40 films were showcased during these 3 days. These included 6 Animation,
8 Documentary, 10 Feature and 16 Short fiction Films.
According to film expert Satish Sharma, “The husband-wife duo of Shalini and Rajesh Shah deserve kudos for organising Kautik with limited resources for so many years. The State Government must take note of such events and promote them wholeheartedly.”
